Catholic school teachers won't strike yet

Reports of a teachers’ strike over a proposed Enterprise Agreement for Catholic school staff have been labelled 'premature'.

Reports of a teachers’ strike over a proposed Enterprise Agreement for Catholic school staff are premature and don’t do justice to the consultation process, a Parramatta executive has said.

The Parramatta Catholic diocese’s executive director of schools, Greg Whitby, said the new agreement was in the proposal stage and managed by the Catholic Commission for Employment Relations on behalf of 11 dioceses across NSW and the ACT.

‘‘This is the beginning of a conversation that will continue in the coming weeks and our teachers and staff will have ongoing opportunities to provide input, ideas and viewpoints,’’ he said.

‘‘We seek their active involvement in finding a new agreement that both supports the profession and gives the best outcome for the students in their care.’’

Mr Whitby said the Catholic Education Office supported the introduction of a new enterprise agreement because it would reduce distractions to the core work of learning and teaching.

‘‘I trust our teachers and support staff to discern what is good for learning and teaching outcomes and we are keeping our staff informed throughout the process of consultation,’’ he said.